A wealthy Manhattan art scion was sentenced to a year and day in prison

NEW YORK (AP) — A wealthy
Manhattan art scion was sentenced to a year and day in prison on Wednesday for
illegal gambling after a judge accused him of trying to avoid punishment by
offering to use his family's fortune to fund an art appreciation charity for
disadvantaged children.

U.S. District Judge Jesse
Furman told Hillel "Helly" Nahmad in Manhattan federal court that
allowing him to stay free and start the charity "would breed contempt for
the law."

Speaking haltingly, Nahmad had
told the judge that he was ashamed of letting his lifelong gambling habit cross
a legal line.

"My family is a private
family and I brought dishonor to it," Nahmad said in a courtroom packed
with supporters. "I will never forgive myself for what I have done."

Under federal sentencing rules,
adding one day to the one-year sentence allows Nahmad to qualify for less time
with good behavior. He was ordered to surrender to prison by June 16.

Nahmad, 35, pleaded guilty last
year to charges he helped run an illegal sports betting business that was
exposed by an investigation of a sprawling scheme by Russian-American organized
crime enterprises. He was among more than 30 people named in indictments
alleging a plot to launder at least $100 million through hundreds of bank
accounts and shell companies in Cyprus and the United States.

The gambling ring catered
mostly to super-rich bettors in Russia but also had tentacles in New York City,
where it ran illegal card games that attracted professional athletes, film
stars and business executives, prosecutors said. Some of the defendants are
professional poker players.

Nahmad comes from an
art-dealing clan whose collection includes 300 Picassos worth $900 million,
according to Forbes. He also is known for socializing with Hollywood luminaries
like Leonardo DiCaprio.

Defense papers had described
Nahmad as a widely respected art dealer and "inveterate gambler" who
made the mistake of getting mixed up with professionals who took advantage of
him to cover massive losses.

"He's a good person and he
screwed up and he's worth saving," said defense attorney Benjamin Brafman.

But the judge said that wiretap
evidence showed that Nahmad wasn't just "the rich kid who is getting
used."

In one conversation, Nahmad
discussed booking bets with someone who had just gotten out of a rehabilitation
clinic.

"We knock this guy off for
one million bucks," Nahmad said. "His dad is a
multimillionaire."

The judge also questioned
Brafman about a photo published in the New York Post shortly after Nahmad's
arrest, showing him wearing a cap with a playing card on it and sitting
courtside at a New York Knicks game next to the lawyer. Prosecutors suggested
Nahmad was making light of the case.

Brafman said he was just trying
to cheer up his despondent client by taking him to the game and Nahmad randomly
grabbed the hat on the way out the door to conceal his identity.

"That's how the stupid
photo occurred. ... Blame me," Brafman said.

Prosecutors had alleged that,
along with laundering tens of millions of dollars, Nahmad committed fraud by
trying to sell a piece of art for $300,000 that was worth at least $50,000
less. He was required to turn over the painting to the government as part of a
$6.4 million judgment.

So far, 28 people have pleaded
guilty in the case. Earlier Wednesday, the judge sentenced another defendant to
five years in prison.